New battery advice. What now?

[Lambeth Cali]

Today I finally put in two new Varta leisure batteries. Replacing the original 2008 ones that have put in good service despite often being left for 6 months and never regularly charging them apart from summer hols and occasional days out.

What should I do now? Plug them in? They say they are at 100% 12.6v. I’ve reset the clock. Go for a drive or just leave them until our next trip in May?

 

[WelshGas]

Today I finally put in two new Varta leisure batteries. Replacing the original 2008 ones that have put in good service despite often being left for 6 months and never regularly charging them apart from summer hols and occasional days out.
View attachment 135185
What should I do now? Plug them in? They say they are at 100% 12.6v. I’ve reset the clock. Go for a drive or just leave them until our next trip in May?

Plug in for 24 hrs.

 

[jeff]

Today I finally put in two new Varta leisure batteries. Replacing the original 2008 ones that have put in good service despite often being left for 6 months and never regularly charging them apart from summer hols and occasional days out

Which ones did you use as a replacement. ?

 

[Lambeth Cali]

The Varta LA80s from Tanya.
Just a different colour.

To be honest on our main holiday we are mainly plugged in. The batteries just need to last a long weekend. They were just about doing that but £370 after 17 yrs seemed a good idea.

That reminds me I need to now look at the awning.

The 2008 van made it up to 2000 metres and 1,380 miles on our Easter Alps trip. So my faith is restored after it broke down for the first time last Easter.

 

[Blue Yonder]

Today I finally put in two new Varta leisure batteries. Replacing the original 2008 ones that have put in good service despite often being left for 6 months and never regularly charging them apart from summer hols and occasional days out.
View attachment 135185
What should I do now? Plug them in? They say they are at 100% 12.6v. I’ve reset the clock. Go for a drive or just leave them until our next trip in May?

The display showing 100% is calibrated to show 100% when the leisure batteries are at 80% state of charge (SoC) or higher. Why? Because the smart alternator is designed to bulk charge the engine battery to 80% SoC and by default the leisure batteries too because they connect to the engine battery / alternator when the engine is running.

This is done to leave space in the battery(s) to store energy scavenge by the smart alternator during engine braking. To keep Lead acid AGM batteries in good health they need to be periodically (say once a month) fully charged to 100% SoC, hence why good practice to plug in the EHU once a month.

You can force the T6 alternator to keep bulk charging the batteries past the 80% SoC whilst driving on a T6 by turning on a heated seat (just one seat at one bar will do) This replicates the max charge feature on the T6.1. This is useful when off grid camping. But a word of warning do it by driving and NOT by idling the engine as this is bad for the engine and the dual mass fly wheel.

 

[WelshGas]

The display showing 100% is calibrated to show 100% when the leisure batteries are at 80% state of charge (SoC) or higher. Why? Because the smart alternator is designed to bulk charge the engine battery to 80% SoC and by default the leisure batteries too because they connect to the engine battery / alternator when the engine is running.

This is done to leave space in the battery(s) to store energy scavenge by the smart alternator during engine braking. To keep Lead acid AGM batteries in good health they need to be periodically (say once a month) fully charged to 100% SoC, hence why good practice to plug in the EHU once a month.

You can force the T6 alternator to keep bulk charging the batteries past the 80% SoC whilst driving on a T6 by turning on a heated seat (just one seat at one bar will do) This replicates the max charge feature on the T6.1. This is useful when off grid camping. But a word of warning do it by driving and NOT by idling the engine as this is bad for the engine and the dual mass fly wheel.

The OPs California is a T5 from 2008.
I don't think Smart Alternators were around then as they were part of the BlueMotion package which was a paid for option from about 2010 before becoming standard on the T6 .

 

[Lambeth Cali]

As I bought a 5 year old 45,000 mile BMW i3 2 years ago I've read a bit and watched a fair amount of YouTube videos on those - obviously different - batteries and tend to now only believe credible tests and my own experience rather than advice. I think my BMW will last for 10+ years.

I couldn't have treated my VW leisure batteries worse and yet they lasted 17 years and were still more than OK so I think I should just carry on using the Cali as I always have - as a holiday/day trip vehicle, plugging it in the night before we go anywhere when we load the fridge; plugging in at 1/2 of our campsites; and often leaving parked up Sept - Easter (7+ months) with only the occasional long drive for a day trip or half-term Air-b-n-b in Norfolk.

I got new batteries from Tanya as while there were other places with maybe £15 cheaper prices, I wanted the batteries from a supplier who has a high turnover to at least get a decent chance of new batteries that haven't been sat lying around.

 

[Blue Yonder]

The OPs California is a T5 from 2008.
I don't think Smart Alternators were around then as they were part of the BlueMotion package which was a paid for option from about 2010 before becoming standard on the T6 .

You are correct.